Graphics card question. SLI or upgrade

[Meresgi]

I'm running 1GB Fermi GTS450 right now in my machine. My question is should I get another and link them via SLI or would it just be better to save up a little extra cash and get a single GTX500 series instead? Not sure on how much of a difference SLI can make when compared to a single card.

[Cephius]

SLI performance increase is moderate at best, maybe 20% FPS increase if the game is well-optimized for SLI. The GTX5X0 cards are close to 200% faster than the one you have.

[Meresgi]

Just saw someone post in the deal section that 5850 radeon for only 150$. I have no clue on Radeon gpus and where they stand.

[Wulfgang]

Go to Tom's Hardware.com; they do side by side comparisons of single GPU and SLI / Crossfire setups across a plethora of games and are just about the best resource out there on the topic.

[rezn0r]

i posted the 5850 deal and ive also had a 5850 for a year and a half (and spent more than double that deal posted, but that's how it goes). the card still holds its own, i run bf3 on high flawlessly (runs on ultra too but high looked fine so i left it alone in case lag hit at the wrong time), RAGE (yes after some tweaking) on max settings perfectly, etc. it even beats the 6850 in certain benchmarks. in my opinion it's a really great deal.

that said, i'd tell anyone right now looking to upgrade to wait it out a little bit. i don't know if things got delayed but the last i saw the 7000 series radeons were going to start showing up in december, and i would assume nvidia's wouldn't be too far off. even if you weren't going to buy a new gen card, it'll push the current prices down even more.

but to answer your question, i'd say use the money to upgrade to a single new card instead of going sli/crossfire.

[Niya]

In direct comparison between crossfire/SLI and a next-gen-card, i'd always pick #2. Less power consumption (with SLI you might even need a new PSU for additional PCIe-6/8-pin-plugs) and just too many flaws with multi GPU setups. Games have to support them, and even if they do it doesn't mean that they run at 200% performance compared to a single card. In best case multi-GPU gives you ~150%. Another typical problem is micro-stutters because the GPUs alternate with rendering frames and you see when they're not in perfect sync.
SLI with high end cards from a generation (the 70/80/90 models for nVidia) might be worth it, but not with mid-performance cards.

[Boyiee]

i posted the 5850 deal and ive also had a 5850 for a year and a half (and spent more than double that deal posted, but that's how it goes). the card still holds its own, i run bf3 on high flawlessly (runs on ultra too but high looked fine so i left it alone in case lag hit at the wrong time), RAGE (yes after some tweaking) on max settings perfectly, etc. it even beats the 6850 in certain benchmarks. in my opinion it's a really great deal.

that said, i'd tell anyone right now looking to upgrade to wait it out a little bit. i don't know if things got delayed but the last i saw the 7000 series radeons were going to start showing up in december, and i would assume nvidia's wouldn't be too far off. even if you weren't going to buy a new gen card, it'll push the current prices down even more.

but to answer your question, i'd say use the money to upgrade to a single new card instead of going sli/crossfire.

Both manufacturers are delayed into "sometimes in q1" which likely means near q2. Although there is a rumor of kelper hitting before christmas it is VERY unlikely. You will start to see some price drops soon though for 500 and 6xxx series cards.